​Your Step-by-Step Computer Reseller Business Plan

​You would think that a business plan for an internet based, computer reseller business would be daunting and complex. Not so.

Your computer reseller business plan and executing the steps in your business plan are a whole lot easier than one might expect.

This is not a business plan to present to a bank. As you wont need the help of a bank to start and build your own, internet-based, computer reseller business. ​

This is a business plan for you to follow and refer to while starting and building your business venture. Here we will attempt to break down each step in a partially detailed manner.

Please see each individual section on this website pertaining to that particular step or subject for more detailed information. The following can be used as an example or an actual business plan for you to follow:​

1. Choose your niche product market online:

When choosing your niche market, remember to place your own personal interest and enjoyment first, profitability and popularity next, but not last. If you can work hard and still manage to enjoy being involved in the products you're selling, then as the saying goes, "do what you love, and the money will follow". See “How to Choose Your Niche Market” for further details on choosing your niche market.​

​2. Create your business name:

​When creating your business/company name, it's always best to have your main keyword or keywords within the name of your business. (Be sure to check for availability for this business name and domain name as well). Creating your computer reseller business name will be one of the most important keys to internet business success. So make sure you get it right the first time. And if you already have a business name then you may want to reconsider creating a new business name. See “How to Create Your Business Name” for further details on creating your business name.​

3. Register your business name:

Once you know for sure that the business name you want to use in not in use by anyone else then you can register your business name with the Secretary of State, your province, or with your local government office. However in most states within the US, you can register your business name at the county clerk's office. You’ll have to call your county clerk's office to enquire about procedures, requirements, and fees.

Normally, you will be able to obtain the business name registration form in person or from the office's website. Then fill out and submit the form with the correct filing fees which typically run anywhere between $10 to $35. Some states may require you to publish your fictitious name in your local news paper as well. See “How to Register Your Business Name”.​

4. Register your domain name, wwwYourBusiness.com:

It always best to have your domain name read the same as your business name. And it's very important to have your main keywords within your domain name as well. After you've registered your business name, the last thing you want to do is lose the opportunity to own a domain name which matches your business name. It’s better to initiate this step now rather than later as many applications and forms will ask you for your wwwname.com as a reference.

You can register your domain name with GoDaddy.com for only $9.95 or with any other domain name registry of your choice. You can choose the most basic web hosting service for now and then upgrade to an ecommerce package later. In this manner, you will be able to upload a simple ‘main page’ with a business logo on that page in order to establish an immediate presence on the internet for applicant reviewers to see.​

5. Form your business structure for your business:

When starting your business on a shoestring budget, you would be much better off starting off as a Sole Proprietorship. You can upgrade to an LLC or a corporation later if you wish to do so. When forming your business as a sole proprietorship there is no need to fill out any forms. Just by registering your business name you become established as a sole proprietorship.​

​6. Obtain your business and/or county occupational license:

Some counties require some businesses to obtain a business and/or county occupational license. You will have to contact your local county clerk’s office to see which of these licenses is required in your county. They can send you the form or you may be able to download the form from their website. Simply fill out the form and mail it in. An occupational license is not applicable in Canada or in the U.K.​

​7. Obtain your sales tax license (resellers license):

In the U.S.A. a sales tax license is also known as your resellers license, sales tax certificate, tax id number etc... Contact or visit your local IRS branch and ask them to send you a sales tax license application. You can also download the application online from your state IRS website. Fill out the application and mail it in. Note: Alaska, New Hampshire, Oregon, Delaware or Montana do not issue sales tax licenses since they don't have a sales tax. Read "How to Obtain Your Sales Tax License"

8. Open your own business bank account for your business:

Although this procedure is not entirely necessary, as your merchant account, and/or PayPal account will be more than willing to deposit your credit card sales funds into your own personal bank account.

However, you’ll still need a business bank account as some customers may pay for big ticket items by checks. Business and academic purchase orders are also paid by checks as well. The payees of such checks will be writing the checks out to your business name and not your personal name. Therefore, for this reason, it would be best to have your own business bank account with your business name on the account.

Find a reputable bank or open a business account where you already have a personal bank account. Or select a reputable bank that's conveniently located next to you. Carefully select the most appropriate account for your business as choosing the wrong one can mean unnecessary added bank fees.

You may or may not have to have a DBA form (doing business as) to present to the bank when opening your account. Have the right documentation ready and on hand, i.e. sales tax id (resellers license), fictitious name certificate, or corporation formation documents.​

​9. Get set up with the computer product distributors:

Visit the distributors’ websites. Pick 2 to 3 or more distributors to get signed up with. Contact them by phone and ask any questions that you may have pertaining to the services and products offered by the distributors. Download their applications, fill them out and fax them in.

Once signed up with distributors, check products, manufactures, pricing and availability on the products which you are going to be selling. Research, contact and ask about procedures and other services offered as well. Read "How to Get Signed Up With Computer Product Distributors"​

10. Read and learn about computers products:

Increase your knowledge and bring yourself up to date on new computer products, the latest technologies and services pertaining to the products which you're going to be selling, as well as the manufacturers who make the products. Be sure to select and keep an eye on 5 of your top competitors on a daily basis to see what they’re selling, what’s hot and what’s not.​

​11. Building your computer reseller internet storefront:

Decide if you’re going to build your own e-store from scratch, from a template, an online storefront solution (i.e. Volusion stores), or have a design firm build it for you. If you're going to build it yourself, then you will need your own software program such as Dream Weaver, Microsoft Expression Web or whichever web development software you choose to work with.

If you're going to have your website built for you then you can shop and compare online for internet storefront developers. Either way, you're going to have to enter in the product images and product information yourself or the developers are going to charge you per product. Most ecommerce packages available are all do-it-yourself. Choose a template and then start adding products.​

​12. Choose a web host provider and a hosting plan:

You can now go back to your domain name register and use them as your hosting provider. Select which hosting plan works best for you. All web hosting providers offer ecommerce solutions with templates and shopping carts included so you may also select an ecommerce package from your web host provider as well.​

​13. Establish a payment solution:

Choose a payment solution for your customers to pay for the products by setting up your own merchant account. You can obtain a merchant account for free with National Bankcard. You will also want to open a PayPal business account for a secondary payment solution as PayPal is used by millions of customers to shop online.​

​14. Start building your computer reseller internet storefront:

Once you have your ecommerce solution in place then start building your internet storefront as quickly as possible. Start off with your main page, adding the best selling products there. Then build your About Us page, Customer Service, Help, Contact Us, Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, Returns Policy and Site Map etc. Building pages is nothing more than adding, copying and pasting text, inserting images, and linking buy now buttons to the shopping cart data base.​

​15. Complete and re-check your internet storefront:

Check carefully for broken links, missing images and text errors. Check, view, and make sure that your storefront can be viewed correctly in all resolutions. Get opinions from friends and family.​

You can advertise your computer reseller business online for free. It also stands to reason that when you pay for advertising you can get instant, targeted traffic with pay per click search engine marketing, paid links, and paid banner clicks for example.​

Follow your step-by-step business plan just as outlined here. Then follow each step scratching each one off your list as you complete it. And then before you know it, you'll be taking your first order.​